Currently enrolled students, staff members, and faculty members are eligible to use ILL. Alumni and former employees are not eligible.

Is there a charge to use ILL?

For Borrowing: We do our best to borrow from other free resource sharing groups and universities within the state of Alabama. Carmichael will pay up to $30.00 for a request. Instances where the cost to borrow materials exceeds $30.00 will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis and you may be asked to pay a portion, or all, of that cost. (Rarely do we have to ask patrons to pay for their loans!)

For Lost Items: If a loan is lost, you are required to pay the fine. The school lending the material determines how much you will owe. A hold will be placed on your student account until the fine is cleared.

Where can I find the due dates?

All returnable material (e.g., books, microfilm, media) are due back to Carmichael Library one day BEFORE they are due back to their home institutions. Carmichael ILL places a square slip of paper in each loan that lists your name and due date. Many institutions place their own labels either on or around the covers of their books; however, materials are due back to Carmichael ILL no later than the date before the date indicated by the lending library.

You can also check when your loans are due by logging-in to your ILL account. If you need to request a renewal, see the next answer.

Find the item you want to renew and click the 'Renew' button located on the right side of the request

This is a tentative renewal. A new due date (if the lending library agrees) will be issued for this item. You will receive an email and the item will be updated on your account if a new due date is issued. If the lending school does not agree to renew the item, the original due date stands

This happens quite a bit, especially if you are working on a large project (e.g., McNair Scholarships, Undergraduate Research, Senior Seminars, Graduate Thesis, articles for publication, etc.). If the renewal is running out, place another request through your ILLiad account. Once the item is checked in at Carmichael, you will trade the old loan for the new one. A note will be placed on the new loan that requires the item due back to be returned before you can leave the library with the new loan.

Regardless of whether you are finished with the material, you are obligated to abide by the due dates set by the lending library.

Are there alternatives to ILL?

Yes.

BACHE (The Birmingham Area Consortium for Higher Education) is a partnership among the five, four-year colleges and universities in the greater Birmingham area:

University of Montevallo

UAB

Miles College

Birmingham-Southern College

Samford University

This partnership allows UM students, faculty and staff to check out materials, in person, with your student ID. So, if Carmichael doesn't have what you are looking for because it is checked out, or we simply do not carry it, you can visit a BACHE library and check out what you need.

Before making the trek up I-65, it's a good idea to call the institution and ask them to place the items on hold for you. This way, you avoid getting there only to find that the book is checked out or missing from the shelf. If you want help with this, stop by the ILL office on the main floor of Carmichael by calling 665-6100 or by e-mailing umill@montevallo.edu.

How do I receive articles?

All articles are sent to your UM email account via Odyssey. The link to your article is only active for 30 days so you will need to print the article out or save it to your computer.

Every once in a while a lending institution needs to recall an item before it is due. If one of your loans has been recalled, you will be notified by the ILL Coordinator at which point you will need to return the item ASAP. You may place another request for the item which will be filled ASAP by another institution.

Why was my request canceled?

The most common reasons ILL requests are canceled:

Carmichael owns the material either in print (books, periodicals) or subscribes to the material through databases (journals, articles). If Carmichael owns the material the request will be canceled and you will be provided with information as to where to locate the information you need.

You already have placed a request for the item.

If you are ever unsure as to why your request was canceled, or you feel your request was canceled by mistake, please contact the ILL Coordinator ASAP.

What is the difference between ILL, ILLiad, Tipasa and Odyssey?

ILL: Is a service used to obtain materials unavailable at Carmichael. These materials include books, articles, DVDs, CDs, microfilm, and journal subscriptions.

ILLiad: Is our old web-based resource sharing management software. Carmichael, along with hundreds of other universities worldwide, uses ILLiad to manage the everyday functions of Interlibrary Loan. With this web-based system Carmichael is more efficient and provides faster ILL services.

Tipasa: Is our new web-based resource sharing management software. Carmichael, along with other old ILLiad institutions are switching to the new cloud based ILL system. Tipasa is used to manage the everyday functions of Interlibrary Loan but has a simpler interface for patrons.

Scan and Deliver: Is the in-house Document Delivery service which allows all Montevallo students, Faculty and Staff scans of articles or chapters from books that are available at Carmichael Library to be sent through the patron's ILL account.